


Afternoon Tea

by nataliaromanovas



Category: The Little Stranger
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-08
Updated: 2016-01-08
Packaged: 2018-05-12 15:38:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,360
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5671273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nataliaromanovas/pseuds/nataliaromanovas
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Roderick and Dr Faraday struggle to keep their relationship on the quiet.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Treatment

**Author's Note:**

> My friends and I were joking around at lunch time so I decided to write some TLS fan fiction as something fun, although we do take this ship (Rodray or Faradrick?) very seriously. I tried to copy Sarah Waters style as best as possible (from the p.o.v of Faraday just as in the book).

It was a late August night, one of those ones where the air sticks to your lungs like a squid hanging desperately on to a rock as the tide tries to sweep it away from everything it knows. For what felt like the hundredth time this month, I drove up the Ayres' untended lane towards the now tragically decaying estate that is Hundreds Hall for Roderick's next session of "treatment". Truth be told, the treatment stopped a long time a go, his recovery being rather quicker than I had expected. In fact the treatment sessions felt as distant as my memory of Hundereds Hall on Empire Day all those years ago. 

Roderick greeted me as I walked up the cracked stairs to the grand entrance hall. He kept his expression fairly neutral, I suppose for feet that his mother may be lurking behind an unseen corner, but I noticed the hint of boyish mischief in his eyes and his slightly relaxed jaw that was usually as firmly set as I remember the Colonel's being. He led me to his room a routine we knew so well, one would almost think we could get there in our sleep despite the winding corridors and untouched rooms that fill the house.

As he closed the door to his disorganised bedroom, Roderick peered his head round to confirm that no soul had happened to follow us. He walked slowly towards me and soon we were entangled in a passionate embrace- he fumbled awkwardly in a way that only Roderick could make beautiful. He reminded me of a ballet dancer in a wind up music box, clumsily making their way through an entrancing dance. He was bold in ways I was not, experienced in ways I was not and dominating in ways I was not despite being the younger out of us. I felt something, almost a pang of jealousy, through my heart at this thought but I shook it away quickly.

I wanted to show him I could be brave and bold just as he could, that I am not afraid of such things. I reached out and cupped his face with my hand, carefully cupping his face with my hand, softly caressing the map of scars near his lips. He needed to know I was in charge too, after all I am the doctor of course. I leaned in, slowly closing the distance between our faces until we were mere millimetres away from each other. I could feel Roderick's warm breath all around me and I felt safe and certain. He worried at his bottom lip with his teeth as he stared at my mouth and my tongue which darted out to run over my lips, which had suddenly become rather dry. 

I closed my eyes and continued in- my mouth so close from his perfect, youthful pucker when suddenly the bedroom door inched open. We flinched and jumped apart as though we had been scolded by hot water. But, oh! It was only Gyp. Roderick and I laughed until our faces were red and our eyes watery, however when we no longer found it to cause so much amusement, I asked Roderick to see me out and I began my journey home. To think that we came so close to being caught- dear Lord! The sheer thrill of it sent my heart racing, yet my stomach twisted horribly with such nervousness I could hardly stand it.


	2. Blackberry Jam

It was quite some days after our last encounter before I saw Roderick again; this time due to a horribly rapid spreading bout of influenza in the village. I felt awfully queer, there was a flutter in my lungs that certainly wasn't caused by the illness for I had protected myself well. It was as though I were some young maid courting her first beau, and in some ways I suppose I was. For the first time in years I felt alive, the unseen discontentedness that had settled in my heart had washed away, just like the disinfectant Roderick uses before yanking a cow's teat at the dairy farm washes away all the germs that may have settled on his strong hands.

As I began my approach up the familiar drive of Hundreds Hall, I became uncharacteristically nervous- how could I possibly hide the burning passion I held for Roderick Ayres when it filled me from the bottom of my stomach to the top of my throat? When it threatened to boil, bubble and over flow t any time I opened my careless mouth? I cleared my throat and attempted to compose myself as a knocked vigorously on the door, hoping I could blame the flush I felt in my cheeks on the fading summers heat.

I tried not to look disappointed as I saw that it was Caroline who cracked open the door and welcomed me in to their home. I followed her inside and half-heartedly listened to her babble on a bout some sort of jam she made, I suppose it was to go with the scones for tea. I provided the occasional nod or short response when needed so as not to appear rude, but my mind was on "other matters" at that time. I flushed once more and followed sheepishly into the grand dining room. 

There, sat at the wonderfully set table was Roderick, taking a sensual drag from one of his "coffin nails". He smirked at me as I drew up a chair next to him. My stomach flipped quite curiously, perhaps it was the hunger setting in? The afternoon tea seemingly progressed without any issues and we chatted until the sun began to lower, it's burnt orange hues reflecting luridly on the walls- I felt as though I were part of the family, although I knew I never could be. I then felt something rather unexpected on my thigh- as I look down in shock I saw it to be Roderick's hand. I could feel my whole body turning red, the tips of my ears burned like hot coals on a blistering fire.

I took a sip of tea so that I could hide my face behind the antique china tea cup, but Roderick had other ideas. He began to slide his hand further up my thigh painfully slowly. I attempted to draw a sharp breath to control myself in the presence of company but in my eagerness to do so I choked on the tea that I had inadvertently breathed in. After I finished spluttering, I excused myself from the table for a cooling walk outside. The sky had now become an exquisite twilight pink occasionally broken up by cloud that were tinted like candy floss that I recall from a fairground stall.

I was suddenly pulled out of my thoughts by a pair of strong arms that wrapped around my waist. Yelping in surprise, I broke free from their clutches and spun around only to find it was my dear Roderick. He looked straight into my eyes so i could see the lustful darkness in his, reminding me of a character from some Wilde novel I recall reading in my youth. His defined features became serious and determined, like a Greek sculpture of Adonis and he spoke "I believe we have unfinished business, do we not Faraday?". However, before I could reply, his lips were on mine

The kiss was slow and uncertain to begin with, yet it developed to become more confident and rough and he took me as though we needed each other just as we needed air, and I suppose we did. He tasted sweeter than any jam or compote one may have to accompany a scone at 4 o' clock in a sweltering summer afternoon. I groaned into the kiss, feeling my head rushing under the weight of the moment until much to my dismay we parted, for the need to breathe became to desperate. "Dear God above Roderick, I am rather in love with you" I whispered, partly to myself, as though he were the stars themselves and I, an astronomer looking through a telescope at the cosmos for the very first time.


End file.
